Govt has number to prove majority in Lok Sabha: Congress

Congress said the government will prove majority in Lok Sabha even if a no-confidence motion is brought or any other resolution on FDI in retail issue taken up under a rule entailing voting.

Unfazed by Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerejee's plans, Congress on Monday said the government will prove majority in Lok Sabha even if a no-confidence motion is brought or any other resolution on FDI in retail issue taken up under a rule entailing voting.

"We are fully confident of numbers and will prove majority on the floor of Lok Sabha when ever any such motion comes. We have more than 272," party spokesperson Sandip Dikshit told reporters.

At the same time, he insisted government has no plan to seek a confidence vote on the issue as it had done during the UPA I on the issue of Indo-US nuclear deal in 2008 when Left parties had withdrawn support from it.

"The situation is now different from that in 2008 when doubts had been raised about the majority of the government as some parties had withdrawn support. This time there is no such situation," he said.

Dikshit said 54 MPs are required to sign any proposal to bring a no-confidence motion and indicated that Banerjee, whose party has only 19 members ion Lok Sabha, may not find support among parties for her move to bring the no-confidence motion.

While Dikshit, who spoke from the party podium refrained from attacking Banerjee, Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari, speaking separately, took a dig at her saying that never in the history of Parliament a party with 19 members has pushed for such an action.

"This is a peculiar situation that in the history of Parliament a 19-member party is talking of a no-confidence motion," Tewari told reporters.

The minister rued that Banerjee is reaching out for support on her party's motion to even those opposition parties "which she has fought for the last 30 years."

"I hope she will reintrospect and reconsider her decision seriously because till three months back she was part of this government and TMC ministers were part of it," he at the same time said.

Attacking UPA government on FDI in retail and corruption issues, Mamata had on November 17 said her party would bring a no-confidence motion against UPA in the winter session of Parliament.

She had sought the support of UPA allies as well as Left parties and expressed readiness to talk to even BJP.

Tewari wondered whether the West Bengal Chief Minister has a to right to "veto" other states like Haryana, Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir which have decided for FDI in retail.

"We have been saying that if the West Bengal Chief Minister does not want to implement FDI in retail in her state, she is free to do that. But if states like Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and Haryana want to implement it, then is it fair on her part to veto it?" he said.

At the AICC briefing, Dikshit said FDI is an issue which should be discussed under rule 193, which does not entail voting.

"Voting should be on an issue which directly comes under the legislature. This being an executive order does not come directly under the purview of legislature. Normally, decisions through executive orders are not put to vote in Parliament.